Alzheimer's sufferers were given fresh hope after British scientists discovered a "window of opportunity" to reverse the symptoms of the disease.

The researchers believe that there is a chance that brain cells previously thought to be dead may still be alive and that targeted medication could bring them back to life before permanent damage sets in.

Toxic proteins produced by Alzheimer's disease cause nerve cells in the brain to die, resulting in problems with memory, speech and understanding.

In the past, scientists have concentrated on the body of the cells but the new research by the Babraham Institute in Cambridge has looked at the "axons" or wires that connect them together.

They have discovered that it is these wires that swell and are damaged first before they, in turn, lead to the starvation of the cells, a process that takes at least four months.

The team, which published its results in the journal Brain, believes that by producing drugs that unblock these axons, the nerve cells could be saved and brought back to life.

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Dr Michael Coleman, a neurobiologist, said; "We have shown that there is a lag between the connections between the cells being affected and the main body of the cell.

"In the past the whole cell has been written off but this suggests there is a chance that they could be saved. It is a whole new target for research to look at.

"Our results suggest a window in which damaged connections between brain cells could recover under the right conditions.

"For the first time we have shown that supporting parts of nerve cells are alive, and we can now learn how to intervene to recover connections."

Alzheimer's affects more than 400,000 people in Britain with a further 300,000 currently suffering from other forms of dementia.

With the rapidly ageing population, the number of people suffering dementia is expected to be more than one million by 2026, while the cost of treating it will double from £17billion to £35billion.

Rebecca Wood, Chief Executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust which funded some of the work, said: "This is an exciting development which could lead to new treatments, and demonstrates the excellence of British dementia research.

"If it's possible to rescue severely damaged brain cell connections, we could perhaps slow or halt the progression of Alzheimer's.

"Further research is urgently needed if we are to offer hope to the 700,000 people in the UK who live with dementia."